Rafael Bustamante v. United States

I. A question that has divided the circuits, whether the Sixth Amendment's guarantee of effective assistance of counsel requires a criminal defense attorney to advise a noncitizen longtime lawful permanent resident defendant that an actual professional conflict of interest exists and whether the failure to disclose the actual self-interest conflict which adversely affected counsel's performance through a purposeful omission of facts in a 28 U.S.C. § 2255 petition that would have revealed counsel affirmatively misled the defendant regarding the effect of his plea on deportation inducing a guilty plea is presumptively prejudicial requiring his plea to be set aside? II. Whether under Cuyler v. Sullivan the court erred in failing to investigate an actual self-interest conflict of interest which existed concerning defense counsel which adversely affected counsel's performance through a purposeful omission of material facts in a previous 28 U.S.C. § 2255 petition which would have revealed counsel affirmatively misled Mr. Bustamante regarding the effect of his plea on deportation?